White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Tuesday declined to comment on what will happen to the Mueller probe if Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein resigns or is fired.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Tuesday declined to comment on what will happen to the Mueller probe if Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein leaves the Justice Department. When asked by ABC News' George Stephanopoulos if President Trump has faith in Rosenstein, Sanders replied, "The president has confidence in the system." After Stephanopoulos pointed out that wasn't what he asked, Sanders commented, "I'm not going to get ahead of the conversation that's going to take place, certainly he wants things to take place." She further noted that the president "has been very clear he wants this [investigation] to come to a conclusion." Trump's attorney Jay Sekulow on Monday raised a possibility for how to handle the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election in the event of Rosenstein's departure, reports Newsweek.
"If, in fact, Rod Rosenstein does end up resigning today, I think it clearly becomes necessary and appropriate...that there be a step back taken here, and a review, a review that has to be thorough and complete...and basically a timeout on this inquiry," Sekulow said on his radio show. Rosenstein's future with the Justice Department has been uncertain since Friday, when the New York Times reported that Rosenstein "suggested last year that he secretly record President Trump in the White House to expose the chaos consuming the administration, and he discussed recruiting cabinet members to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Mr. Trump from office for being unfit."
